Ryan's arrival

• A natural birth wasn't looking likely
• At first it felt like a prison sentence
• There were so many potential complications
• Let's get the show on the road
• Then life began

A natural birth wasn't looking likely

Our story starts in January 2002 with a missed miscarriage on our first attempt. In January 2003, when I was 20weeks pregnant, we had an amnio done which revealed I had a very large and very low placenta. I would be scanned again at 24 weeks. We thought nothing of it, as we were told this is quite common in early pregnancy, and that it would move up once I was further on. At 24 weeks there had been no movement of the placenta at all but the baby was fine and well.

At 28 weeks, I was admitted to hospital with spotting. This cleared up and we were still advised that placenta could move. I was now scanned every two weeks to see what was happening as the baby was also breach.

I could not believe our bad luck. I was all geared up for a natural birth and this was looking less likely all the time. I also felt guilty that everyone was worrying about me and my placenta and not my baby (who was fine).

At first it felt like a prison sentence

At 32 weeks, my fantastic consultant advised that we needed to chat about options. I was told that any bleed, no matter how small, from now on would mean going straight into hospital until the birth. He told us that my placenta praevia was grade 4 and anterior (up the front of my tummy) and that this could complicate things further.

If, by some miracle, it were to move then it would have to move 10-15cm out of the way of the cervix and the baby would have to turn around for me to have a normal delivery. We were advised to prepare for a C-section at 37-38 weeks to avoid me going into labour. I had to be in hospital from 34 weeks just in case.

At this point I knew that nothing was going to move and took the next two weeks to get my head together. The thought of being admitted to hospital 3 weeks before the birth was not a good one to me, as I hate hospitals and needles.

At 34.5 weeks I was admitted to hospital to wait. At first it felt like a prison sentence and I was very nervous about being there. But as I got into the routine and got to know all the staff, and them me, I soon relaxed and realised that it was not really that scary a place to be in.

There were so many potential complications

I will never forget the two days prior to Ryan's birth, as I had visits from my consultant with various other specialists in tow. They told me that blood loss during the C-section was going to be a real problem for me and that I would be matched for transfusion in case this happened. They did not recommend a spinal for this reason and wanted to give me a general anaesthetic as, then, they could control the situation better. I was also told that my uterus could collapse and, in this case, a partial hysterectomy would be done.

It was a lot to take in. My husband and I talked things over and decided that we were in fact lucky to have one child, as some people never have any. We also decided to be guided by the professionals at this point as, three weeks earlier, a woman on my ward with the same problem had ended up in intensive care and was very unwell for four weeks after having a spinal with complications.

Let's get the show on the road

The big day arrived. I hadn't slept all night and had to have the nurse shave about 1.5 inches of hair away. At 8.00am my husband arrived to be with me. At 9.00am, we signed the consent forms and I nearly ruptured myself putting the lovely white stockings on!

I felt really nervous and close to panic. At 10.00am we were off to theatre. I was wheeled down in my bed with hubby with me. My consultant came out and said "Are we ready?" and I said "OK, let's get the show on the road". Five minutes later we walked into the theatre and said good morning to the very special people who were going to take care of me and baby over the next hour.

I got onto the table (much smaller than I had expected) and the preparation started. The table was tilted to the left and I had a drip put in each hand, then the mask for oxygen. I was told to take ten really deep breaths and then I knew he had started to mix the gases as I smelt a funny smell and started to feel light-headed. I had asked, just before I went to sleep, if I could be told the sex of my baby and was told it was a boy, as I had expected.

Then life began

Hubby was waiting outside theatre in recovery and, after 15 minutes, had our son in his arms. I took another 40 minutes to arrive. Things were a bit of a blur until 3.00pm. I will never forget holding our precious son for the first time and the emotions I felt. He was worth all the worry, discomfort and effort, in fact I would have gone through more to get him.

I was given a bed bath (yuck) and had tea and toast at about 5.00pm. I was aware of some pain, but have had worse.

I had told the staff I wanted to breastfeed and, because of the drugs, I had to express for 24 hours, with their help. It was a bit strange to have a stranger do this for me at first and then I got the hang of it. Back in the ward our son was with the nursery nurses for that night as I was still too woozy to be trusted with him. I expressed more milk during the night and all went well.

I had breakfast in my bed. At 10.00am the nurse came to take my catheter out. I was dreading this but I did not feel a thing. Then I was supported as I walked to the shower (which had a chair - thank goodness!). Again, it was a bit odd having a stranger watch you.

When hubby arrived at 12.00pm for visiting, Ryan started to cry. I said he was probably hungry and to draw the curtain and pass him to me. Hubby asked if we should get a nurse to help but I said no, lets give it a go just the three of us. He took to it like a duck to water.

I could not believe that, only a day after major surgery, I was up changing nappies and cuddling him with very few problems or pain. We left the hospital six days later. I could not thank the medical staff and team enough for listening to my worries and for making this the most positive experience possible in the circumstances.

Where to next?

• Read the full birth story
• Read accounts of different types of birth
• Read accounts of other caesarean births